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Exxon $2.5 billion oil spill ruling overturned
by VLOGZ | June 25, 2008 at 08:53 am | 240 views | 2 comments | 0 recommendations
by VLOGZ
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned the record $2.5 billion in punitive damages that Exxon Mobil Corp had been ordered to pay for the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill off Alaska.The nation's highest court ruled that the punitive damages should be limited to an amount equal to the total relevant compensatory damages of $507.5 million.
In the court's opinion, Justice David Souter concluded that the $2.5 billion in punitive damages was excessive under federal maritime law, and should be cut to the amount of actual harm.
By a 5-3 vote, the justices overturned a ruling by a U.S. Court of Appeals that had awarded the record punitive damages to about 32,000 commercial fishermen, Alaska natives, property owners and others harmed by the nation's worst tanker spill.
Just a side note EXXON would bring in $2.5 billion in revenue in two days during the first quarter of 2007 and posting earnings of $40.6 billion in 2007.
June 25, 2008 at 08:53 am by VLOGZ, 240 views, 2 comments
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (2)
at 09:18 on June 25th, 2008
Interesting. Should "limiting punitive damages" really be a consideration in the case of a company that makes so much money?
at 21:13 on June 25th, 2008
Legal firm Lane Powell PC issued an analysis on this Supreme Court Exxon decision today, available here at JD Supra. [Reg required to read the whole doc but it is free in every sense of the word (no cost, spam free.)]
aside: NowPublic should allow not just audio, video and pics to build context around a story, but text/links, too. This legal document adds valuable context to today's court decision.